Cancer and Anorexia

August 3, 2014

Cancer and Anorexia

FACT: The presence of a tumor is often clinically suspected when patients present with anorexia accompanied by marked weight loss.

According to the University of New Mexico Cancer Center, “Anorexia that is a direct result of the cancer occurs in the majority of patients with advanced-stage cancers. For these patients, the cancer has changed the way their metabolism works, dramatically impacting their weight… These changes can lead to anorexia and weight loss.”

Then the UNM Cancer Center cautions its readers that anorexia and the resultant weight loss results in a lower response to chemotherapy and that the loss of appetite and anorexia should be managed with anti-vomiting drugs (antiemetics) and appetite stimulating drugs like Megestrol Acetate (Megace®) which is a steroid hormone, and Dexamethasone which is a corticosteroid.

Cancer and Anorexia Rant

When a person has an infection and runs a fever, most physicians recognize that the fever itself is a protective mechanism our bodies developed, right?

However, when a person has cancer and then loses their appetite and begins to eat less, most Oncologists don’t consider the possibility that it’s a protective mechanism, too. No, it’s just something else to treat.

About me

Karen Pendergrass is an ENTP who is an enthusiast in a myriad of areas including Agricultural Sustainability, Food Politics, Applications of Bacteriotherapy, Autoimmunity, Color Theory, Hard Determinism, Social Engineering, and Rewilding.